Memorial Dining Hall gets fresh feel, renovations
EMMA KING
Staff Writer
Wednesday, in the middle of Memorial
Dining Hall’s after-Chapel lunch rush,
Waco sophomore Seth Findley stood up
on his chair, tapped his plastic cup with
his fork and asked the masses of hungry
students how much they loved the new
Memorial.
“I just love the new Memo!” Findley
said.
The ﬁrst day of classes doubled as
opening day for the 1845 at Memorial
dining hall. The three and a half month
renovation led to a brighter and more open
interior with more of a modern twist than
the previous Memorial.
“It looks a lot nicer and there’s more

seating than there used to be,” Katy
sophomore Lorin Mott said.
Instead of a cream color, the walls are
now two tones of grey, accented with white
trim and a few large screen TVs. The ﬂoors
are now hardwood and the ceiling now
has lights built in to it. There is still booth
seating and chairs, but the chairs all match
each other and they match the tables. Some
of the chairs even have cushioned seats and
backs.
Finding a quiet corner or an empty table
is still hard during peak meal times though.
“I feel like there are more people
who come here now,” said Pﬂugerville
sophomore Tori Dinan.
However, despite the new faces or more
faces, most of the friendly staff faces have
stayed the same.

Richard Hirst | Photo Editor

GOOD EATS Memorial Dining Hall underwent renovations this summer. Rebranded 1845
at Memorial, the space now contains a new paint job, hardwood floors and televisions
around the dining area.

>>WHAT’S INSIDE
opinion
California wants to
become its own nation?
Seriously. pg. 2

news
Baylor School of Social
Work heads to downtown
Houston with a new
master’s program. pg. 3

sports

Coach Art Briles plans
to make Baylor the No. 1
team in Texas. pg. 6

Vol.116 No. 4

“Overall, the staff’s been really great
adapting to all the new equipment and
learning everything,” said Danielle Coley,
Aramark location manager for Memorial.
“We really want them to still feel at home
here at Memorial.”
Memorial kept their famous ﬂying
saucers, omelettes and cookies, updated
their deli with a carving block, changed
their salad bar and added a gelato bar. Coley
said she’s been getting good reactions from
staff and returning students.
Rosie Kennedy, who has been working
with Baylor dining services for 15 years,
said she loves the updates and the new
atmosphere. Usually, she works from 6:30
a.m. to 2:30 p.m., serving breakfast and
lunch in the new Memorial.
“Everybody comes in and they just love
it,” she said.
Kennedy said she even loves the staff’s
new 1845 Memorial shirts.
She said Wednesdays are the busiest
days for Memorial and sometimes the staff
does get stressed out, but she said they
always work everything out.
“You’re going to always have
some kinks, even when we had the old
Memorial,” Kennedy said.
She said it takes a while for everyone
to get back in a working routine when they
come back from summer break.
“It took maybe about four or ﬁve days
for everyone to catch up,” Kennedy said.
Now that they have gotten everything
off the ground, it seems to be running
smoothly. Students are still being fed and
Kennedy is still smiling behind her station.
“I have no problems at all,” Kennedy
said.

A number of Baylor students seek to create
a culture of political engagement on campus,
both before and after the upcoming presidential
elections.
College Republicans, Baylor Democrats and
the discussion group Civitas are among several
student-led groups that seek to educate young
voters and bring them to the polls on election day.
However, according to Dr. Patrick Flavin, assistant
professor of political science at Baylor, these
groups face an apathetic target audience.
“If you look at who turns out to vote, older
people vote at much higher rates than younger

POLITICAL >> Page 4

Regents
announce
outside
counsel
SHEHAN JEYARAJAH
City Editor
The Baylor Board of Regents has retained Philadelphia law ﬁrm Pepper Hamilton LLP to initiate
a comprehensive independent review of the university’s procedures on sexual assault according to a
statement from the university.
Partners Gina Maisto Smith and Leslie Gomez
will lead the investigation. Smith and Gomez are
partners in the Education Counseling, Litigation
and Investigation Services and White Collar Litigation and Investigations Groups. Smith’s practice
is centered on sexual misconduct, while Gomez
specializes on institutional response.

BOARD >> Page 4

Three MCC students awarded
full-tuition Baylor scholarships
ROLANDO RODRIGUEZ
SOTO
Reporter
Three new Baylor students were
awarded full tuition transfer scholarships this fall after earning perfect
grades at McLennan Community
College.
The MAC College Money Program, an organization of the Waco
Foundation, awards three full tuition
scholarships every year to three high
achieving McLennan County students. Baylor University furnishes
the scholarship.
The MAC Program’s goal is to
provide all McLennan County high
school graduates with the opportunity to pursue a higher education.

The competitive transfer scholarship
allows students the possibility to
attend a prestigious, private university despite ﬁnancial or social backgrounds.
“Many of our MAC students
would prefer to complete their education here in Waco so they can live
at home because of family situations
and ﬁnances,” said Robbie Stabeno,
director of scholarships for the MAC
Program. “This gives them the opportunity to attend a school like Baylor and be able to live at home when
they would not have normally been
able to afford the cost of education.”
The three recipients each said
while their ﬁrst week at Baylor has
been overwhelming, they are excited
for the future of their educational

career.
“I can focus more on academics
and being involved on campus,” said
Waco junior Dylan Kirby. “I enjoy
and look forward to all the different
things that Baylor has to offer that
other colleges don’t offer.”
“The scholarship has taken a
huge load off of my family because
they don’t have to pay for the tuition,” said Waco sophomore Richard Fuentes. “It helps me relax in the
classroom knowing that I don’t have
a big bill at the end of the year.”
For Waco sophomore Miguel
Diaz-Romo, this scholarship was
his goal since graduating from high
school.
“Being able to come to Baylor
wouldn’t be near a possibility with-

out this scholarship, so it’s been everything for me,” Diaz said.
As MAC scholars, Kirby, Fuentes and Diaz can advance in their careers with a college degree.
“I don’t want to be a minimum
wage worker,” said Fuentes. “A college degree will really help me in the
future.”
The MAC Program has been
awarding the transfer scholarship
to high achieving students from
McLennan County since 1999, but
they also offer the MAC Grant for
incoming college freshmen. The
grant is awarded to students from
low-income families.
Aside from funding students’ ed-